BETTER NOW THAN LATER, RIGHT?

Super-rook Rodney Stuckey needed surgery to repair hisfractured left hand, an injury he suffered in thePistons' final preseason game. Stuckey probably won'tbe back until December.It's a blow, but not a severe one. The Pistons haveplenty of depth at the guard spots.Remember when everyone was speculating that FlipMurray would be irrelevant, if not released, thisseason? Well, suddenly Murray is the first guard offthe bench.Murray outplayed Arron Afflalo at the shooting guardspot during the preseason. Now, Murray will back upBillups until Stuckey heals. Murray, who dropped 15pounds, has shown more quickness and confidence thispreseason.

KOBE-GONE?

If it doesn't happen in training camp, it will happenin a couple of months. Or just before the tradedeadline in February. Or maybe it will stretch intothe summer, like the Kevin Garnett saga.It's inevitable that the Lakers' brass will reaching abreaking point with Kobe Bryant's whining and moodswings and get the best package possible for him.All signs point to Bryant heading to either Chicago orDallas, though I don't know if either needs him tomake the Finals. The East is so wide open right now,there are 6 or 7 teams who could run the playoffgauntlet to the championship round. Chicago, whichfinally won a playoff series last season, has thepersonnel and experience to break through withoutmaking a major move.The Mavs were victims of Warriors Mania last seasonbut they're still neck-and-neck with San Antonio andPhoenix as the top contenders in the West. Why wouldthen want to mess with their chemistry? Well, younever know what Cuban might do to get that elusivering.As for the Pistons, Bryant probably wouldn't waive hisno-trade clause to come to Detroit. And the Pistons'package would probably have to include Rip and Tay,for starters.It's not out of the realm of possibility but thePistons believe they're still prime contenders withwhat they have. If they struggle the first half of theseason, that thinking could change. But by then, Kobemay have already been shipped to his next team.

HALFWAY THROUGH

We've past the midway point of Pistons training campand this much is clear: Even with competition for somereserve spots, it's painful to watch these preseasongames.The veterans aren't going full out, they're justtrying to avoid injury. Unfortunately, RichardHamilton didn't. He sprained his ankle against DenverSunday. Coincidentally, he played 18 minutes anddidn't take a shot. Maybe it's true what they say -you're more susceptible to injury when you're notgoing full speed.The biggest negative has been Amir Johnson's inabilityto play, also because of an ankle sprain. Johnson,according to Flip Saunders, will need a crash courseat the end of camp to get up to speed. I don't thinkit will cost him a rotation spot, though. Joe Dumarsdidn't sign him for three years this summer to justsit on the bench.

About Me

Dave Pemberton covers the Pistons and the NBA for The Oakland Press. A graduate of Oakland University, Pemberton has been a sports writer/page designer since joining The Oakland Press in 2006. Along with covering various high school sports in both print and multi-media Internet platforms, Pemberton has covered the Oakland University men's and women's basketball beat for the past two years. Follow Dave on twitter at drpemberton